My children’s book about London

I so enjoyed (over) researching this book … waiting for low tide so I could see where the Fleet flows into the Thames (and listening to its gurgling progress by standing over a drain cover), checking out mummies at the British Museum, discovering that you can buy broomsticks at Kings Cross station, climbing 334 steps to the top of Big Ben (officially the Elizabeth Tower btw), and finding out about gladiators in Roman Londinium for instance …I’m especially grateful to those who took part in my mini-interviews. I chose people whose roles might inspire young readers – a female firefighter, a keeper at London Zoo, the Raven Master at the Tower of London, a Vice Lord Lieutenant of London and a female member of the River Policing Unit. I didn’t really need to go on patrol with the River Police, but they kindly let me travel on the Thames with them, and at the Tower of London I not only chatted with the charming Raven Master but encountered the then alpha male raven, who greeted me with a gruff hello! Just some of the tremendous perks of being an author …